The Beast in Him (Pride #2)(22)

Using a knuckle, he lifted her face up to meet his. “Jessie Ann? Are you crying?”
She smirked. “No, you bonehead. My eyes are watering. If you spent the last five minutes coughing up a lung, your eyes would be watering too.”
“Fair enough.”
He stroked her cheek with one finger. “Can’t you get allergy shots to help with that?”
Her appalled expression made him snort in surprise. “You’re still afraid of needles?”
“I think afraid is a bit of a loaded word.”
“I remember that year they had to inoculate us for something or other—”
“Distemper.”
“Right. Distemper.” He sure did love being canine. “And you just cried and cried. Like a baby. Did a lot for your reputation.”
“Shut up.”
On a whim, he lifted her hair a bit. “You still don’t have earring holes.”
She slapped his hands away. “I think I have enough holes in my head without adding to them, thank you very much.”
“So nipple piercing completely out of order?”
She scrunched up her face and he had the feeling she wanted to cover her breasts to protect them. “Don’t even go there!”
“Sorry, sorry,” he said on a laugh. “Didn’t mean to freak you out.”
Jessie let out a shaky breath and pushed her hair off her face. That’s when he saw her hand. “Your knuckles.”
Jessie looked down at her hand. “Oh, God.” Her eyes widened a bit as she remembered what she’d done. “Your sister. I hit your sister.”
Although it seemed throwing things at his head didn’t warrant any remorse since she’d done it twice already. “Don’t worry about her. She’s got the Smith hard head.” He reached over and opened his medicine cabinet, taking out a first-aid kit. “And it’s not like she didn’t deserve it a bit.”
“That’s not the point. It was weak and pathetic and—”
“Jessie Ann, do me a favor. Cut yourself some slack.” He lifted her hand and began to carefully clean it. “I know it’s hard for you, but really. Give yourself a break.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It sure isn’t hard to get you pissed off.”
“I’ll admit, I’m short on temper.”
“Short like a Munchkin.”Her eyes narrowed dangerously. “You know what—owwww!”
Smitty glanced up from wiping her knuckles with an alcohol swab. “Oh. Did that hurt?”
“I am starting to hate you.”
“No, you’re not. But I know you’re tryin’.” He covered her knuckles in antiseptic cream and a loose bandage. “There. That should do it.”
“Good.” She tried to get up, but he wouldn’t move. “Would you move?”
“In a second.” He washed his hands in the sink and took his own damn time drying them. The longer he took, the crankier his little wild dog got.
“You know I have to get back to work.”
“Liar.”
“I am not lying.”
“What? They’ll beat ya?”
“Smitty.”
He gave her a wicked smile. “You into that?”
She finally smiled even as she tried not to. “Bobby Ray!”
“It’s all right. There’s no shame in enjoying a firm hand. Especially if it’s mine.”
“Don’t even think about it.” She glanced down at her watch and he immediately covered it with his hand. “What are you doing?”
“Time is not of importance at the moment.”
“Time is always of importance.”
He removed the watch. “Not today.”
“Hey. Give that back.”
Smitty shoved it into his back pocket. “Nope.”
“You do know that watch costs more than your body parts would earn on the black market.”
Smitty placed his hands on either side of Jessie’s legs, keeping her in place. “I’m not going to ask how you know that.”
“That’s for the best,” she answered solemnly.
Smitty stared at her for so long she got nervous. “What? What are you staring at?”
“Your mouth is driving me crazy.”
Jess wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. “Why? Do I have something on it?” she asked sincerely.
His hands gently gripped her jaw. “It will.” Then his lips were on hers. Possessive. Demanding. His insistent tongue making her mouth his.
Smitty stepped closer, his legs butting up against her knees. When she didn’t open to him, his hands slid between her thighs and pried them apart so he could move in. He didn’t stop walking until the presence of the counter under her butt made him.
Once comfortable, those big hands moved up again and framed her face, holding her in place as Smitty kissed what sense she had left right out of her.
Jess tried to push him away... well, sort of. She slapped her hands against his shoulders really hard. 
Unfortunately, she didn’t shove him away. Her control snapped, and all that pent-up horniness took over.
She yanked off his jacket and tossed it across the room, her legs wrapping around his waist and her ankles locking at the base of his spine.
Smitty dragged his hands up her torso, gliding across her breasts. The feel of his hands on her breasts, even through her sweater and T-shirt, had her arching into him, her own hands scrambling to the snap of his jeans. She didn’t know what had come over her, but she loved it. For once the only thing she could think about was this moment. Not tomorrow or ten years from now or ten years ago. No worries about the business or college funds or charity plans or anything else. She didn’t have any of those worries as she released Smitty long enough for him to tear at her jeans, dragging them off her hips and down her legs. When he yanked them off, her sneakers went flying, slamming into the shower curtain and landing in the tub.
Jess went back to Smitty’s fly, desperately yanking it down while Smitty leaned over and dug into the medicine cabinet. A box of condoms in his hand, he went back to kissing her, rocking her to her toes at the urgency she felt in his every move.
Like he simply had to have her.
Lord, she tasted good. He could kiss her for hours and never get tired of it. But his body was screaming at him. Screaming for him to take her. He’d never felt such urgency before. Not for any female. Usually, Smitty took his time, driving a woman crazy until she couldn’t see straight. Until she was begging him.
But Jessie Ann didn’t beg. She didn’t have to. Instead, she snatched the box of condoms out of his hand and tore the cardboard open. When she had one, he caught her hand in his.
Panting, he said, “Wait, Jessie Ann. Just wait.” He rested his forehead against hers, trying to get his breath back. Trying to get control.
“Okay,” she said softly. “Okay.”
Closing his eyes, grateful she gave him some breathing room, he thought about how he’d take his time, make this right. This was Jessie Ann, after all. Little Jessie Ann. She deserved this to be right and proper and... and...
Smitty let go a vicious snarl as Jessie’s fingers scratched a little-known spot at the base of his scalp. One of his two “happy spots.” How she knew, he had no idea. But almost immediately his right leg started to shake as his rational mind slipped away.
“Don’t—”
But she did, clever fingers stroking, digging into that spot and scratching harder.
“Dammit, Jessie Ann!” was the last thing he said before he took hold of her panties and ripped them off with one yank.
Grinning as she tore open the condom packet, the tip of her tongue resting against her top lip, she lifted his cock from his jeans and rolled the latex on.
Smitty took firm hold of her thighs, yanking her to the edge of the counter. He fit his cock against her—amazed how wet and hot she was with so little effort on his part—and shoved home.
Both of them groaned, then Jessie wrapped her arms around his shoulders, pulling him closer. He gripped her ass tight in both hands and braced his legs apart to keep him steady. She held him like her life depended on it. He’d never had a woman hold him so tight, one arm around his shoulder, the other his waist while her ankles stayed locked behind the small of his back. He tipped her back, giving him the perfect angle.
Taking firm hold of her hips, Smitty fused his lips to hers before he slowly pulled out of her only to drive back in. She screamed into his mouth, but that did nothing except make him insane. He held still inside her for a minute, his cock throbbing as her pussy clenched around him. One more time he desperately tried for control, but Jessie rested her lips against his ear and whispered one word.
“Smitty.”The wolf in him took hold and he pulled out only to slam back in. Again and again—with a ferociousness that worried even him.
She thought they’d been bullshitting. Or bragging. Or both. All those giggling girls who’d said they’d been with one of the Smith brothers. Jess would sit under the bleachers in the gym or at the football field, or she’d hide in trees and listen to those stupid, silly girls go on and on about “going on a Smith ride.”
But now she knew. As she gripped the man who fucked her senseless for, hell, she didn’t know how long, Jess realized those girls hadn’t been bullshitting. At least not about Smitty they hadn’t been.
And when that Smitty-provided orgasm snuck up on her, she couldn’t even scream or speak. Instead, it felt like her heart had stopped and her organs temporarily shut down as her head fell back and she gasped, her entire body sort of clenching around him, gripping him so tight she knew she would have broken a lesser man.